This week there was a conference in London on Inclusive Capitalism. The concern is a popular one these days: the sense that economic gain is not evenly spread, there is unpunished corruption, and that only the rich are getting richer.
Usually, this issue is raised by activists on behalf of the poor, but the problem is now big enough that all but the most dogmatic within the business community are starting to consider it a problem. And that was the attitude here: the wealth gap was presented as a threat to capitalism itself. The premise being that if too many people decide that the system doesn't work for them, then they'll push for a different system. Thus there is an incentive for companies to behave more amicably towards people: play nice or the game will be changed.
It's hard to disagree with that logic. But there's a doubt I have about it's ability to change the world: the central tenet of capitalism is that people need a personal incentive to work. That is, it's not enough to tell people that it's the right thing to do, nor is it enough to say that it will be best in the long run to work for society's sake. And yet, that's what these people expect businesses and their executives to do: make a sacrifice today that will offer no personal or immediate payoff, just for long-run survival or the overall good of society. So as much as I appreciate their goals, I don't think this attitude will change business, any more than I expect people to work without pay.
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